As Reivan was stuck in his mother's embrace while reading a book, Helen and Hector were going through the motions of their own coming-of-age ceremony.
"Helen! Hurry up!" Hector stood behind his sister's chair as the girl ate a very hearty breakfast. "Geez. Just bring it with you and eat it along the way."
"Ring's full." Helen didn't bother looking back, her gaze trained on a particularly delicious-smelling pastry. She picked it up and stuffed it into her mouth, devouring it in seconds. After choosing another one, she looked turned back and glanced at her brother. "Use yours? Please."
The young boy frowned but still nodded. "Fine. You're probably going to eat through everything you stuffed inside your ring in no time anyway..."
His sister smiled. "You're the best."
"Oh, shut up, you..." Hector rolled his eyes but his lips cracked into a grin. He then started putting away some of the pastries on the table, carefully picking out the ones that he knew his sister liked. "We have to hurry or we'll get scolded. Again."
"Mm." Helen nodded as she stood up, her mouth caked with traces of sugar. "Let's go."
"You've got some stuff on your..." He pointed at his sister's mouth, but seeing her just tilt her head, he took out a napkin and made an annoyed face. "Ugh, let me do it..."
The young girl groaned as her mouth was roughly wiped. She silently glared at her brother but didn't move away.
"There. All done." Hector shoved the dirtied napkin back inside his spacial storage ring before he grabbed his twin sister's hand and ran off. "Let's go!"
"Slow down..." Helen muttered in protest even though she kept up with ease.
The twins made a clamor as they left the Mercer Mansion's dining hall, leaving their empty plates behind.
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In front of House Mercer's manor within the Aizen Kingdom's capital was an open area. Statues of armored warriors adorned both sides of the stone-paved path leading from the manor to the gate. The sharp grass was meticulously trimmed to perfection, as not even a single blade of grass stood out from the rest.
In front of massive wrought-iron gates, a group of about thirty children crowded around a man and woman, both of which, had dark hair and eyes — a common trait among the Mercer clan's members.
As Hector and Helen approached, Hector let out a yelp. "Ah! We're late! Hurry, hurry!" He shielded his eyes from the sun's brightness while he ran, still holding his sister's hand.
"I'm sorry..." Helen's gaze lowered as she apologized. The patter of her shoes against the stone hastened as she ran ahead, pulling her brother along.
"Wha!" The boy exclaimed in surprise as he was jolted forward.
"Sorry."
"Don't apologize if you're just gonna keep doing it anyway!" Hector complained as he struggled to keep up with her speed.
Among the group, the lone adult man saw the twins and gave them a friendly wave with a big smile on his face.
'Oh! It's big bro Dramon!'
Seeing the man, Hector couldn't help but smile. Sadly, he couldn't wave back since it was taking all he could just to keep up with his sister.
"Mean woman," Helen said as she slowed her jog to let Hector keep up. She also let go of his hand, instead pointing toward the female grown-up next to Dramon.
His sister's words made Hector look toward the other adult — a woman with sharp eyes and brows that looked as if they were furrowed by default.
'Ugh. Why is she here... wasn't big sis Stella supposed to come...?'
The smile Hector wore when he saw Dramon instantly vanished when he found out Gretelia was there too. His hasty steps even slowed into a trot as his reluctance grew. He even debated begging Reivan's father to let him reschedule his and Helen's assessment ceremony.
'Yeah... if I ask Reivan to beg with me, the king will agree, right...? We don't have to go today...'
Hector was just about to turn around and sprint back to the manor, but when he saw that his sister had already made it to the group, he sighed and gave up. Although his steps felt heavy, he made his way over as well.
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"You're late." Gretelia scowled as her stern glare bore down on the twins. "Don't you feel ashamed of yourselves? You made all the other kids wait out in the sun!"
Hector looked down in shame while Helen turned her head to the side with a blank face, doing her best to look indifferent.
"Now, now. Gretelia, they're obviously sorry, so let's leave it at that." Dramon wore a troubled look on his face as he tried to de-escalate the situation. He walked over to the twins and gave their shoulders a soft pat. "Besides, they're actually right on time. It's just that everyone else came early."
"Then they should've also come early." Gretelia scoffed before she spoke to the rest of the children. "Good job to the rest of you for coming earlier even though you weren't prompted to do so. Make sure to maintain your punctuality in the future as well."
The woman then turned her strict gaze toward Dramon. "And I don't believe it is wise to coddle them as you have done."
Dramon shrugged. "Even if you enjoy waiting out in this heat, don't expect others to find it pleasant as well."
Gretelia turned around as if she found it pointless to talk to them more than she already had. As she walked toward the gate, she left behind a single word that made the twins wince.
"Bastards."
The man's expression immediately twisted into a grimace when he heard that. He was just about to make a scene when he remembered that there were two other people who were affected more than him. After gesturing for the other children to follow the woman, he looked down at the dejected twins.
"Sheesh. Can you believe her?" Dramon walked in between Gretelia's shrinking form and the twins, shielding them from any more of the woman's cold gazes. "Don't mind her. She's just cranky because her ugly mug can't get her a husband. And her crappy personality can't get her any friends."
'Well... the fact that the man she likes left her for your mother instead is the greatest reason, though.' The knight chose to keep that particular tidbit to himself though. Gretelia's decade-long grudge was a well-known topic in their clan, but obviously, the children weren't privy to it.
"But..." Hector had his head hung low but he looked up to meet the man's eyes. "It's true, though. We are bastards..."
Since they had arrived in the capital when they were four years old, the twins had come to know what the term meant. Rather, they were forced to find out.
Even so, no matter how much Hector pondered, he could never understand why it was such a big deal.
Stella had different parents than Hector and Helen, and yet she was really nice to them. The same went for Dramon. Heck, Reivan had parents that didn't even belong to the Mercer clan, and yet he was a great friend to them.
That's why Hector was so confused. Why did it matter so much that his father wasn't from Aizen? Couldn't they just get along even when their parents weren't from the same place?
Even though he and Helen never did anything wrong, why were they treated so much worse than the other kids?
'Oh. There was that one time when Helen thoughtlessly said that all the other kids sucked at playing Knights n' Thieves... But some of the adults were horrible even before that, so I don't think that's it...'
In fact, Hector had the sad thought that he and his sister might have been treated even worse if they weren't so close to Stella, or if they weren't friends with Reivan.
"Ah, well, that's not..." Dramon scratched his cheek awkwardly, at a loss for what to say. In the end, it seemed like he couldn't think of anything comforting to say, so he tried his best to smile. "Cheer up, you two."
He gave the twins the most reassuring pat on the shoulder he could muster before heading off to follow Gretelia. Even if he wanted to comfort the twins some more, he still had a job to do.
Hector's shoulders drooped as he followed Dramon out of the gate, where a parade of carriages waited for them. He gaped a little as he observed the armored knights acting as drivers for each one. There were even knights riding what seemed like giant wolves that were bigger than horses.
'Whoah... Huskies! Cool!'
The other children also reacted positively to the noble beasts, showering them with praise and attention. And the huskies, in turn, threw their chests out and raised their noses in the air while basking in the limelight. Their razor-sharp fangs were concealed at the moment, but the intelligence in their eyes and the deadly claws on their feet were enough evidence to show the stark contrast between these beasts and the typical household pet.
Helen didn't care about the big dogs though. She trailed behind her brother, gripping the edge of his shirt while intentionally meeting the gazes of the other children who were staring at them. The common response she received was for the child to hurriedly look away, but from time to time, some would engage in a brief staring contest with her, accompanied by a sneer, before redirecting their gaze to the huskies.
She mentally noted down the faces of the kids who sneered at them, swearing to never forget.
"Hey, what're you doing? Stop looking around..." Hector scolded his sister in a muted tone. "Look over there! Don't they look cool? I wonder if we can ride one if we ask nice enough."
"Mrgh..." Helen frowned in annoyance but still stopped what she was doing. However, she only spared a short glance at the giant dogs, uninterested. She much preferred cats instead.
'But aunty Vianna's were nice...' she thought, thinking fondly of the queen's soft tail. It had only been for a moment, but while she was playing with Reivan, Helen had come into contact with Vianna's tail. It would be a long while before Helen forgot that pleasant sensation.
Helen idly wondered what it would feel like to bite it.
"Right." Gretelia's voice broke the children's reveries. "You kids will ride these carriages to the base of the Sword Star's mountain. four kids to a carriage. I won't accept complaints about why you're not riding with your friends."
She then took out a list and read the children's names out loud, directing them to their assigned carriages one by one. The twins waited patiently for their turn. Hector was all too happy to have his turn later, taking the time to admire the huskies even more. In contrast, Helen took out a sugar-coated bread roll, intending to continue the breakfast that had been cut short.
After a few minutes, only the twins were left. However, Gretelia said nothing more as she stowed the list away and turned around.
"Uhm, e-excuse me..." Hector hesitantly tried to raise his voice, but he was ignored as the woman mounted her husky and galloped off on it, leading the stream of carriages. "What... do we do now...?"
Helen tilted her head, her mouth full of pastry. After she'd chewed and swallowed, she casually suggested, "Go back?"
"No, no, no. We can't just go back, y'know?" The young boy shook his head in exasperation. "What about our coming-of-wage?"
"Coming-of-age." His sister corrected him.
"Yeah. That."
In response, Helen merely shrugged. It made no difference to her whether she had her assessment ceremony or not. The things she strived to accomplish wouldn't change.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
At a loss for what to do, Hector just stood there with his sister, watching the carriages and husky-riding knights go by. Some of the knights spared them a confused glance, while others loosed a disdainful glare. Either way, none of the mounted riders helped them.
'Should we really just go back...?' Hector questioned himself.
Just as he reluctantly turned on his heel to return inside the manor, a booming voice called out.
"Hey!" One of the knights riding a husky suddenly stopped in front of them. Although his face was covered by a metallic helmet, the twins easily recognized the man through his voice. "Why are you two still here?"
"Big bro Dramon...Uhm, I..." Hector stumbled over his words, hurriedly trying to piece together an explanation.
"Mean woman." Helen cut in and summarized their plight in two words.
"Ah..." Dramon nodded in understanding as his helmet dissolved into particles of light, revealing a terrifying grimace. "I swear to the Sun God, that woman's gonna get it one of these days..."
Suddenly, a gentle but strong wind lifted the twins off their feet, delivering them into the knight's arms.
"Hold on tight, alright?" Dramon placed Hector in front of him, while Helen was seated behind — strapped to him with a belt, of course. "Miki's kinda rowdy."
In protest, the husky snorted as it whacked Dramon's head with its long fluffy tail.
"Wow!" Suddenly finding himself atop the beast he'd been admiring earlier, Hector couldn't help but beam in delight. He even wanted to go so far as to thank Gretelia for the opportunity. Riding a husky was far better than squeezing into a boring carriage.
"Hmm..." Helen, on the other hand, lightly stroked the husky's fur with a pondering look on her face.
'Aunty's tail is better,' she decided with a nod.
"Ready?" Dramon checked if the two were holding on properly, but it was an exercise in futility since he could immediately retrieve them even if they did fall. Still, it didn't hurt to be extra cautious. With a smile on his face, Dramon rematerialized his helmet before prompting his trusty steed forward. "Let's go!"
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Fast.
That was the only word Hector could think of as the scenery around him became a blur. He couldn't even recognize where they were, and even if he did, they'd be in a different place before he even processed the information.
Helen was different though. Her dynamic acuity was so good, she could still recognize the street stalls that her Big sister took her to sometimes. In fact, she couldn't help but want to stop and order a few things.
'Oh. But I don't have money...' she thought, her mood falling.
Dramon would probably laugh it off and buy anything she wanted if she asked, but Helen felt a bit embarrassed to trouble him any more than they already have.
'Mmm...Reivan...'
Instead of freeloading on Dramon, Helen instead wanted to go to Reivan's house. She'd get to eat tons of delicious food while she was in there. And nobody ever scolded her if she ate too much.
'The best...'
Helen's small lips twisted into a pout as she thought about how unfair it was for Stella to move in there by herself.
'I wanna live there too...'
There was plenty of food, Reivan was there, there was lots of meat in the pantry, Queen Vianna with her yummy-looking tail was there, the palace never ran out of sweet cakes or bread, and nobody there was mean to her.
Not to mention all the food! That part was particularly important to Helen.
Drool started to drip from her mouth as she drowned in thoughts of meat and cakes. In her heart, the desire to move into the castle became her greatest wish, second only to her desire to shut their clan up for good.
'But how...?'
"Hmmm." Helen tilted her head as she tried to come up with a way to get what she wanted.
Maybe Reivan would let her stay there if she asked nicely enough? Their big sister, Stella, always said to try asking nicely and let their cuteness do all the work.
Or would she have to give him a lot of money? That didn't seem right to Helen either.
In the end, Helen decided she'd just ask Reivan what he wanted in exchange for letting her and Hector live in the palace.
'Later.'
And just like that, the young girl's destination after the assessment ceremony was set in stone. Hopefully, the annoying ritual finished quickly.
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It didn't take that long for Dramon and the twins to arrive at the meeting spot.
"We're here. Get off." Dramon said as he guided Miki to a halt.
"Fine..." Hector — disappointed that the ride hadn't lasted longer — sluggishly jumped off the husky and winced in pain when his landing sent jolts through his body. With teary eyes, he rubbed his knees.
"..." On the other hand, Helen jumped off with poise and grace, casually using Dramon's body as a stepping stone to reach the ground.
"Hey!" Dramon frowned in annoyance when he saw the dirty footprint on his armor. In the end, he shrugged as he blew it off with a gentle gust of wind. It was partly his fault since he forgot to help the children down — he'd been too focused on finding that hateful woman. "You two wait with the other kids. I have to go now. Behave."
"I'm always well-behaved." Hector rolled his eyes and ran off.
"Like hell, you are." The knight scoffed before shooing away the other kid.
"Bye-bye." Helen lightly waved at Dramon before pattering away to follow her brother.
At the base of the immense mountain, the other children — who had gotten off their carriages a while ago — bustled with excitement and anticipation. The mountain loomed tall and imposing, its peaks obscured by white clouds. Covered in lush greenery, the sides were dotted with trees that resembled swords with how sharp their branches were.
"Hey, what do you think we have to do up there...?" One of the children asked no one in particular.
The child next to him shrugged. "Beats me. Maybe we have to slay a dragon?"
"I think a dragon's a bit much... plus, I heard they only show up in the northern continent."
"You're just saying that cuz you're a wuss."
"Am not!"
"You are."
"Shut up!"
'It sure is noisy in here.' Hector frowned as he took his place at the back of the group. Trying to go up to the front would only attract the wrong kind of attention.
Plus, Gretelia might be there, and Hector didn't find her company pleasant at all. It would be great if he could avoid her for the rest of his life.
The children of the Mercer clan, including the twins, assembled at a plain area located near the foot of a mountain, excitedly anticipating an enigmatic rite of passage that they knew next to nothing about. Their whispers filled the air as they speculated on what the assessment ceremony might entail, letting their imaginations run wild. Of course, not all of them were in the mood to chatter. Some stayed put quietly, gazing at the mountain with anxious gazes.
However, most of the children were simply eager to take on whatever challenges lay ahead. As they stood there, looking up at the towering mountain, they couldn't help but feel a sense of awe at its sheer size and beauty.
Hector was one of those children.
"It's even more massive up close..." Hector craned his neck upward, trying to see the top, but his eyesight could not pierce clouds so he had no choice but to give up. Having lived in the capital for most of his life, the Sword Star's mountain was a common sight, but seeing it from such a close distance was a first for him.
"It's big." Helen also looked up at the massive mountain for a few moments but lost interest quickly after. What attracted her attention the most were the strange trees. She tilted her head, not quite sure whether there was something special about the trees or not. "Weird..."
In the end, that was her final verdict.
"Alright. Pay attention!" Dramon shouted from the front of the group. On his hand was a piece of paper. Strangely though, it looked a bit crumpled. "Once your names are called, you'll show up in a new area. Don't be scared, you'll be safe. There'll be someone there to watch over you too. All you need to do is walk straight forward until you cross a red gate."
'A red gate. A red gate. A red gate...' Hector repeated the words in his head. He didn't want to accidentally forget what they were looking for.
"Right. We'll do it in pairs." The knight nodded and then made eye contact with Hector. "You. And your sister. You two are up first."
The young boy gawked. "Huh? Why us...?"
"Why not you?" Dramon countered.
'I mean... when you put it that way...'
Hector didn't really have anything else to say to that, so he nodded in a daze.
Helen also didn't mind going ahead of everybody else — and she especially didn't mind all the annoyed glances she got. In fact, she felt slightly pleased. Making sure her brother wouldn't see, she sent a smug look toward the kids who'd sneered at her earlier. "Heh."
"Ready?" Dramon raised a brow.
The twins turned their heads toward each other, their gazes meeting. Both of them nodded before the scenery around them changed.
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"Ack!" Hector cried out as he fell forward. It felt like the world around him was spinning in one direction, while his body was going the other way.
In other words, he was insanely dizzy.
"Mhm." Helen prevented Hector's face from being acquainted with the ground by grabbing the back of his shirt just in time. "Careful."
"Yeah... thanks." The young boy made a valiant effort to maintain his balance, but despite his efforts, he still wobbled unsteadily. Eventually, he couldn't take it anymore and took a seat on the ground. Hector screwed his mouth shut and covered it with his hand, trying his best not to paint the floor with the contents of his stomach.
"Okay?" Helen asked, her usually emotionless face tinged with worry.
To his sister's question, Hector shook his head with his eyes closed.
"Mhm." The young girl sat next to her brother, gently rubbing his back with her tiny hand. She didn't know what else to do at the moment. Hopefully, someone would come to help them out.
And her hopes were not betrayed.
"It'll be over soon. Don't worry."
Helen looked toward the source of the voice to see a brown-haired man that appeared to be a bit younger than Dramon.
"Oh, I'm not a bad person." The man raised his arms to show he meant no harm, but then he chuckled to himself. "Though I suppose that's also something a bad person would say, isn't it?"
Saying nothing, Helen continued to stare at the stranger. She didn't forget that Dramon had said someone would be watching over them, however, she didn't know what to say at the moment. After all, she was somewhat bad with strangers.
Misinterpreting Helen's silence as caution, the man cleared his throat before introducing himself with a smile. "My name is Lyon. I am here to guide you. Uhm, I believe Sir Dramon said something to that effect, am I right?"
Lyon had a warm smile on his face, exuding a calming aura that instantly put Helen at ease. He had a lean build and stood tall, with broad shoulders and a sturdy stance. He was dressed in a simple yet elegant outfit, with a cream-colored shirt and dark pants that hugged his toned legs.
"Here. Let me see him." Lyon closed the distance instantly and without sound. He brushed a stray strand of his hair aside as he reached forward to place his palm against Hector's forehead.
"Ah." Helen could only react after the deed had already been done.
'So fast...'
At the very least, the man was much, much faster than those big dogs. And even faster than their big sister, Stella.
'Ascendant?'
"He's fine now." Lyon stood up before taking a step back to give the kids some space. His hazel eyes sparkled with kindness as he looked down at the young girl and her brother. The sight of the sister caring for her brother warmed his heart. Seeing healthy children running around was the best evidence that his hard work was worth something.
'What promising children.'
The twins' affection toward each other was clear to him. And that affection would be good fuel for their growth, regardless of how their assessment would go. Lyon was sure of it.
He wanted to talk with them a bit more, but he had a job to do. With a bit of reluctance, he raised his hand and pointed to the end of the stone-paved path.
"See those red pillars? You just have to walk through it. The Sword Star is waiting." Lyon uttered the words he'd grown used to saying. Inwardly, he also sent a silent prayer that their assessments went well.
He never expected what came next.
"Don't wanna." Helen's brows furrowed as she glanced at where Lyon was pointing at.
"...W-what?" Lyon's eyes widened as he felt his mind go blank. "Little one, can you repeat what you said...?"
"Don't wanna," she repeated.
"Uh-huh. That's what I thought you said." The man chuckled wryly after confirming that his ears hadn't been deceiving him. "Well, this is somewhat troubling..."
In the three hundred years he'd been doing this, Lyon had never encountered a child that refused to undergo the trial after they already reached this far. In fact, the more excitable kids would run to the red torii gates.
'What do I do in this situation...?'
He couldn't very well force the girl to undergo the assessment ceremony. Even if it was the will of the clan she belonged to, the child's intentions must still be respected. But at the same time, the girl had come here to have her assessment, so why was she refusing at this point?
'There has to be a reason. Right?'
That was when Lyon's gaze landed on Hector. Suddenly, it all clicked together in his mind.
'Oh, does she not want to do it unless it's together with her brother? How sweet.'
With a warm smile on his face, Lyon folded his legs and matched eye levels with Helen. "Are you waiting for your brother?"
Helen shook her head. "No."
"O-oh...?" Lyon's cheeks twitched. This was the second time he'd been surprised today. "Then why don't you want to? You have to go there to get assessed, y'know? That's what you came here for, isn't it?"
Again, the girl shook her head.
Lyon heaved a sigh as he stood up. "How very troubling..."
'Maybe I should just send them back...?'
But the girl named Helen Mercer had been on the knighthood's watchlist for a while now. Because of the second prince's words, a lot of people were curious about just what "Perfection" meant.
'However, if she really doesn't want to...'
Just as he was about to send them back, Hector suddenly stood up.
"Hey, what're you doing...?" Hector shook his head to drive off the last bit of his grogginess. "We gotta get going!"
Helen frowned. "But..."
"No buts. We just gotta walk there, what's so hard about that? I heard Reivan did it too!"
"He did...?"
"Yeah! So let's go finish this and show off to him!" Hector started marching toward the red torii gates. His steps were slightly unsteady since he was still a bit dizzy, but he wouldn't let that stop him. After saying thanks to Lyon, he left his sister behind.
Helen stood there for a moment, thinking about what she would do.
'Reivan did it too...'
Reivan was an amazing person that Helen had a hard time beating in games, so he likely did well. Hector was determined to do it too. That meant that if she stayed here, she would be the only one who didn't get this assessment thing that everyone thought was super important.
"Mm." Helen's face turned resolute as she followed after her brother. She didn't want to be left out, so even if she didn't want to do it, she'd do it. "Wait up."
"Hurry up, slowpoke," Hector complained in apparent irritation, but still stopped to wait for his sister. When he saw her though, he couldn't help but frown. "Why are you walking like that?"
Helen was walking with very short steps while covering her mouth with both hands. Her forehead was wrinkled and beads of sweat danced across it.
"What's wrong with you? Are you okay?" Hector worriedly ran toward his sister and wiped her forehead with his hand. "Are you sick? But you were okay earlier..."
Shaking her head, Helen used one hand to point toward the torii gates while the other stayed planted on her lips, locking her mouth shut.
Her brother turned around to look at the gates. A large tree with white petal-like leaves could vaguely be seen on the other side, but aside from that, there was nothing strange about it. Now that he had time to look, he also noticed that there were similar trees all around them — except they had pink leaves.
'They're pretty...'
Hector marveled at the beautiful sight, but didn't want to praise it out loud. The trees were pink after all. And pink was a girly color.
'The white one's better.'
On that note, the large tree beyond the gate was better. He could openly say it looked nice. Plus, white was a great color that wasn't particularly girly.
'I wonder if it's prettier up close?'
Hector turned back to his sister, his face a mask of confusion. "What is it? I can't see anything."
Helen shook her head. "Feel."
She then raised her left arm and showed it to her brother, whose eyes widened into saucers.
"Hoo-whee. That's a lot of goosebumps." Hector marveled as he poked his sister's arm. "Are you cold? I have a scarf in my ring."
Helen shook her head again.
"Geez. What is it, then? You're bad enough at talking as it is. Now you're not even saying anything at all." Hector heaved a sigh of exasperation as he gripped his sister's free hand. "C'mon. Let's just get this thing over with so we can go home and have you looked at. Maybe you can eat the leftover bread from breakfast. Doesn't that sound nice? Let's go!"
The young girl was helpless as she was pulled along, closer and closer to the torii gates. Her face grew paler every time she took a step.
Not even a quarter of the way there, she could no longer hold back.
Helen wrenched her hand out of Hector's grasp, doubled over, and unloaded the contents of her stomach on the stone-paved path leading to the Sword Star's dwelling place.